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Chicago Sights

Carbide and Carbon Building (Hard Rock Hotel)

Fodor's Review

Designed in 1929 by Daniel and Hubert Burnham, sons of the renowned architect Daniel Burnham, this is arguably the jazziest skyscraper in town. A deep-green terra-cotta tower rising from a black-granite base, its upper reaches are embellished with gold leaf. The original public spaces are a luxurious composition in marble and bronze. The story goes that the brothers Burnham got their inspiration from a gold-foiled bottle of champagne. So perhaps it's fitting that the building now houses the Hard Rock Hotel Chicago, party central for those who wouldn't be caught dead at the Four Seasons.